Veritas
by Liris
Summary: Because truth is important. So is pissing off Naru, which is why Yasuhara and Mai are proud to bring you the unseen case files of SPR. Heavily N/M, background A/T and implied M/Y, but only because it annoys the Boss-man. Contains spoilers post-anime/manga
1. Yasuhara's Case Notes

_Veritas_ is latin for 'truth'. I won't be commenting for the rest of this fic unless specific questions come up; I'll leave you in the capable hands of our narrator, but I will say now that I don't own Ghost Hunt, I am not making profit from this story (indeed, it's costing me a fortune), and updates will be once a week, on a Monday - time will change, day will not.

Enjoy :)

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><p>Hey, Yasuhara here! Guess what I found in the archives! Naru's personal notes (not transcribed by Mai) on several key cases. So, being the kind, sensitive person I am, I got her to interpret his awful handwriting (just because he has a doctorate, does it mean he has to write like a doctor?), and here I present them to you. Because, who doesn't want a Naru's-eye-view of the world?<p>

_Hey, I'm in here too!_

Yes, alright. Mai's telling her side of the story too, in sections were Naru either wasn't present or was totally uninterested, in order to make the facts a little clearer. And I have helpfully summarised it all for you by case, to the tune of a few simple truths. Because that's what SPR is all about, right? Finding the truth?

_Hunting ghosts, Yasu. We hunt ghosts._

Yes, we hunt ghosts. And zombies, ghouls, demons, vampires, and that mermaid the one time, do you remember?

_All but the mermaid; I think you might have dreamed that one, Yasu._

Ah, well, that would explain why her top came flying off and landed in my innocent hands.

_… Why are we friends again?_

Because, dear Mai, you love me. You adore and worship me. And I think you're ok too.

_Geez, thanks. You know, I could still show this to Naru…_

…

_Hah! I win._

Fine. Getting back on topic, the following cases are arranged in chronological order, starting with the first relevant one I could find.

_It's not relevant; it's not even a case. You just like quoting it at me._

It shows where it all began. It was on a cold, stormy night…

_Oh shut up. It all starts about three years after Naru found Gene's body. He took it back to England, disappeared for two months, then came back and tried to pretend everything was the same as it had been._

It kind of was.

_Well… yeah ok. Finding Gene didn't really change Naru at all, and we all forgave him for lying to us eventually._

Some of us faster than others.

_The guy was a jerk to me before he left!_

He was a jerk to everyone, and I didn't say I blamed you. Hey, it all worked out in the end, right?

_I suppose so. What were we talking about again?_

The case files. Included in this incredible selection (if I do say so myself), we have singing, dancing, kissing, possession, vampires, serial killers and one very persistent mother.

_That's quite the list. I like how you wrote Luella in after the serial killer._

I wasn't sure which annoyed Naru more.

_She's not that bad… but I take your point._

Of course you do, I'm always right. Anyway, enough bickering. I…

_We._

… We hereby present the case files to you, dear reader. May you laugh, cry, and generally enjoy our exploits.

_Have fun!_

We'll start with truth number one: Nightmares can affect your waking life too. Read on to discover why Naru asks for tea so often and just what prompted the following events.


	2. V1'0 All Riled Up

Veritas #1: Nightmares can affect your waking life too

Prologue: All Riled Up

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><p>The clock on the wall ticked in the silent room, the hands aligning perfectly on eight am. Naru smirked and raised one eyebrow, counting down mentally in time with the second hand. 5… 4… 3… 2… 1…<p>

The outer door slammed against the inner wall as Mai arrived, six seconds late and windswept. She wrestled the office door back into its frame, fighting the winds that were responsible for her current unkempt appearance. Slumping against it, she paused to get her breath back, then straightened and threw her jacket and scarf onto the coat rack. Naru shook his head at her attempts to calm her hair and leaned against the doorframe of his office, waiting for her to notice his presence. She cursed under her breath as she resorted to pulling a band from her pocket, then jumped as she turned and saw him. He hid his smirk and shook his head at her. She could be so oblivious…

"Mai," he said, enjoying the fleeting look of panic that crossed her face as she tried to think why he'd be waiting for her. She started babbling before he could continue speaking, as he knew she would. It was why he had paused after saying her name; he rather enjoyed watching her expressions when she was flustered.

"Sorry I'm late Naru, it was really windy and I nearly got blown into the road twice, I swear half the people out there can't drive, and why is it always so busy this time in the morning, all you can hear are the car horns and people get so irate…"

He raised an eyebrow at her, and her breathless babble slowed to a stop. Yes, she was late, but even he wasn't picky enough to get upset about six seconds. He waited until she squinted at him quizzically, her head tilted to one side like a dog that's heard a high-pitched noise. She even wrinkled her nose in the same manner. He found her rather cute when she pulled that face, though he'd die before he told her so. He cleared his throat and nodded slightly towards the kitchen.

"Tea, Mai," he said, eyes firmly on her face.

What kind of mood was she in this morning? Would she roll her eyes and sigh loudly, proclaiming him to be an addict before flouncing off to the kitchen muttering thinly veiled insults under her breath? Or would her eyes widen that tiny amount before she nodded and hurried off to the kettle, apologising for taking so long? She tended to swing between the two extremes, and which he saw would determine how he dealt with her for the rest of the day. So sue him, watching his assistant all riled up was the most entertainment he got in the office. The monk and the miko dropping round to play coffee-morning didn't count – they were noisy, disruptive, and not cute in the slightest. Also, Mai was harder to irk when they were in the office.

Given her reactions so far this morning, he was betting on the flustered, apologetic Mai who ran to the kettle. He was right. She jogged into the kitchen, gathering her hair into a ponytail as she went. Naru returned to his office and sat behind his desk, opening a file on his computer and paying half a mind to the information it contained. The other half of his concentration was trained on the kitchen, where rattling and chinking noises told him how far along in the tea-making process Mai was. The whistle of the kettle sounded the readiness of the brew, and thirty seconds later he heard Mai's footsteps crossing the common area towards his office. He blinked and focussed on his computer as she rapped twice on his door, not waiting for an answer before pushing it open with her hip and entering. He paid her no mind as she placed the cup on the desk, hovering for a few seconds with a hopeful expression on her face. He knew what she was waiting for; when she was in one of her feistier moods, she would stand there for up to a minute, tapping her foot before snapping at him that manners never killed anybody and she would get a 'thank you' out of him one of these days, mark her words. It hadn't happened yet; it was a sure-fire way to rile her up and made the entire day more amusing.

In this current mood, she wouldn't confront him about it, and sure enough after seven seconds with no visible reaction to her presence in his office, she sighed and her shoulders sagged as she backed out of the room, closing the door behind her. He looked up as he heard it click shut and smirked, reaching out to take a sip of her tea. He'd never known anybody who could make the beverage as well as her, and today he'd be asking for multiple cups, but not because of the taste. It was a brilliantly easy way to annoy her, and that would take extra effort today due to her more subservient attitude. That would dissipate after another, ooh, three demands? He smirked and turned back to his file. Give it ten minutes.

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><p>The man sighed and rubbed at his temples, trying to erase the migraine that was gaining a foothold. The woman who'd just left his office was the third one today to come to him complaining of the same thing. They all used the same words too; early hours, interrupted sleep, screams and thumps… the list went on. He suspected that they had gotten together and decided to make his life difficult, but there wasn't a lot he could do about it. They were right. It did keep happening, and it was waking up most of the building at unsociable hours. What was more, it had been happening for a couple of years now. He was actually surprised the tenants had put up with it this long.<p>

He ran his hands down his face and shook his head. He had no choice.

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><p><span>Yasu's case notes<span>

Don't worry, we're just getting started. The entries will get longer, more stuff will happen, and all will become clear. I hope.

Next time: Mai gets pissed off, and Naru gets caught in the line of fire.


	3. V1'1 Looking For A Fight

Veritas #1: Nightmares can affect your waking life too

Chapter 1: Looking For A Fight

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><p>The next day, Mai started off snarky. She stalked into the office two minutes after eight, threw her bag at her desk, and glared at Naru as he called for tea. She bowed mockingly, throwing a "yes, your highness" in his direction as she stomped into the kitchen. Naru blinked, the only sign he'd give that her mood surprised him. He hadn't done anything yet; what had her so angry already? He shuffled in his seat so that she couldn't reach him over the desk, just in case. Mai had been known to need holding back in the past, and the monk wasn't there to oblige this time. If she wanted to throw a punch at him, she'd have to walk around the desk to get at him, and he wasn't planning on winding her up that far.<p>

She stamped her way into his office and stopped just short of slamming the tea down on his desk. She saluted him sarcastically, smiling with a decidedly unpleasant twist to her lips. "Anything else, oh narcissistic one?"

Naru decided against pushing her; that glint in a woman's eye never led good places. He shook his head, turning his attention to his computer screen. "You can go."

"Oh can I, huh? Well,_ thanks_, 'cus I needed permission to do that."

At that, Naru looked up. This went beyond annoyance – Mai was looking for a fight. He narrowed his eyes at her.

"I don't know what has managed to make you so mad this early in the morning, but as I highly doubt that my usual penchant for tea has driven your blood pressure to such dangerous levels, I would appreciate it if you would find a different outlet for your ire. Either that, or you may begin looking for another job."

He wasn't actually going to fire Mai – the office would be deathly dull without her around – but the warning achieved its desired purpose. She closed her eyes and forcibly calmed herself down, though her hands were still fisted at her sides. He counted to three, allowing her to cool off to the point where he doubted that she'd snap at him again, then cleared his throat so that she'd look at him. That dangerous glint was still there, but muted. She would be more rational now.

"What happened?" he asked. There was a flare of surprise in her face – she hadn't expected him to ask, evidently – then she sighed and shook her head, turning on her heel and stalking out of the office. There was a soft thumping noise as she collapsed onto the sofa out there. Naru blinked, then abandoned his desk and joined her in the common area. She was lying half-on-half-off the sofa, her eyes closed, head tipped back and the bridge of her nose pinched between the fingers of her right hand. He cleared his throat, but she didn't do more than groan.

"What do you want? You can't have drunk all that damned tea already," she said, not moving from her sprawled position. Naru shook his head and sat beside her gingerly. Being this close was probably not safe, but he didn't think Mai would actually hit him. Well, she probably wouldn't. Maybe.

He was going to phrase this very carefully.

"Can I help?"

Mai looked up at him, wide-eyed. "What?" she asked, sounding utterly confused. He resisted the urge to roll his eyes. His interest in her life wasn't that unusual.

"Can I help?" he repeated patiently. Mai blinked at him, then shook her head and muttered something under her breath. Even at this distance, Naru didn't quite manage to catch it, but he doubted that it was anything coherent. Mai had a habit of talking to herself in disjointed sentences when she was upset, and that was the glint that was rising in her eye now. He hesitated for a moment then reached out and laid a careful hand on her limp left arm. She stopped murmuring and looked at him like he'd lost his marbles.

"You're touching me," she pointed out, sounding very confused. At that, he did roll his eyes, removing his hand and replacing it in his own lap.

"I had thought it might comfort you somewhat, as you are obviously upset. Apparently, I was mistaken."

Mai relaxed at his words – apparently, the tone had reassured her that he was actually her boss and not some kind of shape-shifter just pretending. She shrugged and shuffled backward so she was sitting, rather than lying on the sofa.

"My landlord's a bastard," she said wearily, closing her eyes again and letting her head fall onto the back of the sofa. Naru watched her in silence, waiting for her to continue. She sighed and shook her head, then sat up and smiled at Naru. There was no sincerity in it. She attempted a bounce to her feet, almost tripped, and rubbed the back of her neck, a little embarrassed. Naru knew what she was trying to do, and while he didn't like her shutting herself off from him, he had no right to pry and he didn't fancy a shouting match over it. He let it drop, standing much more elegantly than Mai had managed and walking to his office. He paused in the doorway and looked back at her over his shoulder.

"Mai?"

She looked up at him, blushed, then spoke to the carpet.

"Sorry Naru. I didn't mean to snap at you. I've just had a bad morning."

He treated her to a rare smile. "Tea, Mai. This one's gone cold."

She smiled back and nodded at him. "Ok."

He went back to his desk and sat behind it, listening to Mai moving about in the kitchen. He hadn't exactly solved the problem, but he had managed to calm her down. And Lin accused him of not knowing how to relate to people.

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><p><span>Yasu's case notes<span>

Four years on, and Mai is still temperamental.

_Hey!_

You know it's true. Apologies again, dear readers, for the shortness of this episode, but the following one shall be longer. Also, rather more childish. At least Mai won't be shouting any more though.

_Don't bet on it. I'll show you temperamental..._

You're proving my point, there.

Next time: Monk, Ayako and Mai are being very secretive. Naru doesn't trust them at all.


	4. V1'2 Eavesdrop

Veritas #1: Nightmares can affect your waking life too

Chapter 2: Eavesdrop

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><p>It was three hours after that second cup before Naru decided he'd left Mai alone long enough. He opened his mouth to call out, but at that moment he heard the office door open and the unmistakable tones of the monk and miko assaulted his ears. He sighed and massaged his temples, wishing that Lin hadn't chosen this week to go to England. Supposedly, he was giving a progress report to Naru's parents, but the boy was well aware of the Chinese man's continued fling with Madoka. It was hard not to be when Lin occasionally talked in his sleep, leaving Naru wishing that he wasn't quite so fluent in Mandarin.<p>

The two so called 'adults' may not quiet down when Naru asked them to, but one glance from Lin could make them all but silent for the remainder of their visit. Naru far preferred when they were mute, as that way Mai was the only one whose productivity was affected by their presence, and even then it didn't make a huge difference. She could be very efficient when she wanted to be.

Naru sighed and closed his mouth, resigned to at least an hour of the two distracting both Mai and himself from their work. He would not however, go that long without another drink. He needed the caffeine to even think about putting up with the inane chatter in the main office. He pushed to his feet, hearing Mai laugh in response to something the monk said to her, and opened his office door, glaring at the three who now stood staring at him dumbly. Mai was the first to recover.

"Naru, look who came by!"

He sighed. "Yes Mai, I can see that. I would appreciate it if you could keep the volume down during this visit."

She nodded. "Of course, sorry Naru."

Monk had a different approach. He grinned broadly, striding towards Naru with his arms open. If that man hugged him, Naru was going to throw him out of the window. The thought must have shown on his face, because Monk stopped dead and dropped his arms to his sides. It didn't stop his enthusiastic beam, however. "Naru-chan! Give Mai a break, huh? The girl's been working hard all day."

"She's had rather a break from duty already today," Naru retorted, looking around the monk's bulk and raising an eyebrow at Mai, who flushed as she got his meaning and nodded, turning to the kitchen.

"Sorry Naru! I'll do it now!"

Nodding his approval, Naru acknowledged the miko's presence with a smirk before returning to his office. Mai came in a minute later to give him tea, and once again looked to him for some kind of thanks. He ignored her until she huffed and stomped out, shutting the door rather forcefully behind her. He smirked after her. That was more like his Mai.

Much to Naru's surprise, the three in the outer office actually respected his requests to be quiet for longer than ten minutes. When almost twenty minutes had passed, and he still hadn't had to shout at them to shut up, he grew suspicious. He didn't trust the silence. Once again getting to his feet, he moved to the doorway and was about to pull it open when he realised he could hear them talking. They were quiet, voices just above a whisper, which was why he hadn't heard anything sitting at his desk, but this close to the door he could make out the words. They weren't usually so careful; whatever they were saying, they didn't want him to overhear. That thought was quite enough to make him pause this side of the door and eavesdrop.

"…ruined it?" Matsuzaki was asking. Mai sighed.

"I was a bitch to him this morning," she said, her voice muffled. Her face was likely buried in her hands.

Monk laughed. "PMSing, Mai?"

There was a brief silence, then two smacking sounds and a pained yelp from the monk. Naru smirked. Even he knew better than to tease women about that. The monk muttered to himself, self-pitying nonsense by the tone, and Naru ignored him to listen to the girls' conversation. Before Monk acted like an idiot, it sounded very much like they were discussing him.

"What did he do this time?" asked Matsuzaki, bringing them back on topic. Mai sighed again, this time with a hint of a wail in there.

"Nothing! That's the point! I was mad already when I got here, and he behaved like he normally does, and I just blew up at him! I can't believe I did that…"

Matsuzaki and the monk both spoke at the same time; through the door Naru couldn't make out what either of them was saying. Apparently, neither could Mai, because she shushed them and asked the miko what she'd said. Naru would have bet money that the monk was sulking because Matsuzaki got to go first.

"I asked what you said to him. Maybe it wasn't as bad as you think? I mean, he didn't seem any different than normal when we got here."

There was a pause, then Mai started talking haltingly, obviously thinking it through as she went along.

"He asked for tea when I came in, like usual…"

"So he said 'Mai, Tea' in that demanding tone he reserves for when he's caffeine-deprived. That's not asking, Jou-chan. Naru doesn't do asking."

"Whatever," Mai dismissed. "He was normal. You know, for Naru."

Naru frowned at the door. Was that really what they thought of him? He did ask, on occasion. Generally, it was more productive to assume that people would do as directed. Certainly, Mai was the only one who'd ever chewed him out about it.

Mai was still talking. Naru leaned against the wall and started listening again.

"I made some royalty comments, took him the tea, he told me he didn't need anything else, and I snapped at him. He told me, basically, to calm down or get out. I came out here and collapsed onto the sofa."

That wasn't quite the response he recalled making; apparently she knew as well as he did that he had no intention of going through with his threat to fire her. Still, it was accurate enough he supposed.

"What happened then? So far it doesn't sound much different from your usual arguments, bar Naru not provoking it."

Again, Naru frowned at the door. He and Mai had their spats, certainly, but they were not always his doing. Admittedly, he did provoke certain of them, but by no means all. It had taken him a few cases to learn what Mai deemed acceptable and what would make her shout at him in front of the others. He made a point to tell her enough to keep her placated from then on, unless he was getting bored. It was rare on cases, but it did happen. Still, he felt that the miko's assessment was unfair. Not that he could call her on it, because that would mean admitting that he'd been listening in, and he wasn't about to tell them that. He'd never hear the end of it.

Mai was speaking again, quieter than before. Naru leaned closer to the door.

"He… he followed me out here. He asked if he could help. Then he put his hand on my arm. He said he was trying to comfort me."

There was silence for a minute, then the monk whooped rather loudly and, from the mild choking sounds that followed, gathered Mai into a bear hug that was almost guaranteed to leave her gasping for air. He laughed as Matsuzaki told him to let go of Mai, and again the sound was rather loud. That was provocation enough, Naru felt, for ending this ridiculous conversation between the three. Quite why they were so interested in his reactions to Mai's minor emotional breakdown, he wasn't sure, but there was no reason they should be. He opened his office door with a snap, and Monk dropped Mai instantly, jumping away and trying to look innocent. The women looked at him apprehensively, probably wondering how much he'd heard. He wasn't about to tell them.

"Bou-san, if you must demonstrate your python impression, kindly do it elsewhere. Mai has work to do, and cannot do it if she is oxygen-deprived."

The monk sighed and nodded, rubbing at the back of his neck. So that was where Mai had picked that quirk up from. Naru looked over to the girl. She was red-faced and avoiding his eye. Even if he hadn't overheard the conversation, he would know something was up. This was too good an opportunity to pass over.

"Something I should know, Mai?"

She blushed harder and shook her head. He smirked at her. "You're a terrible liar, Mai."

3... 2… 1…

"Oh, leave her alone Naru!" Matsuzaki snapped, coming to Mai's aid right on cue. Naru raised an eyebrow in her direction.

"Then perhaps you would like to tell me what has Bou-san so wound up that he tried to smother my assistant."

"You…"

"Nothing, Naru," Mai chimed in, cutting the miko off before she could finish whatever insult she wanted to hurl Naru's direction. "He just got over-excited because… I got the lead in a class play. That's all. I'll get you some more tea, and we'll keep the noise down. Sorry."

Naru watched her as she hurried into the kitchen to put the kettle on. Mai was a terrible liar, but that statement, while ringing of distraction, didn't sound like a lie. He turned to Monk and Matsuzaki, who both tried to look as if this wasn't news to them. He smirked. Mai wasn't the only bad liar in the room.

"So, what is the play?" he asked the room at large, expecting two different answers and then some blustering. Instead, Mai's voice immediately rang out from the kitchen, giving the other two no time to trip up. Naru was silently impressed.

"My Fair Lady. The top-scoring English students are putting it on; our sensei thinks it'll improve our knowledge of the culture, as well as the language and the different accents."

Naru nodded. That was actually a good idea. He did, however, have two problems with her reasoning.

"You're one of the top English-speaking students?"

Mai stuck her head around the doorframe, looking annoyed at the insinuation.

"Yeah, well, ever since I found out my boss is actually some famous English doctor, I thought it might be a good idea to learn the language. That way, I can eavesdrop when you and Lin whisper to each other and actually understand what you're saying."

That logic, he could well believe. Deciding not to pursue that topic any further, he turned to the second problem he had with this play.

"My Fair Lady is, traditionally, a musical. Can you sing?"

At that, Mai smirked at him and withdrew into the kitchen. Naru was a little shocked by the expression; he'd never seen the girl look so… well… mischievous. She was actually teasing him. He blinked and returned his attention to the monk and miko, who were exchanging pleased looks and titters. He glowered at them a little. Mai emerged with a fresh cup of tea for him before he could say anything, however. Pushing it into his hands, she grinned at him and gave him a small shove in the direction of his office.

"We'll try to keep it down now, Naru. We won't disturb you again!"

He was half tempted to ignore her blatant effort to remove him from their gathering and join them on the sofa, but decided to concede this one to her. It would be easier to get the information from the girl once the monk and miko had left and he could prod at her without it being pointed out.

"Don't slack off for too long," he said, allowing her to push him into the office. "Those files all need sorting before five o'clock."

"I promise," she nodded, saluting and making Monk laugh. Naru rolled his eyes and shut the door to his office. Let them have their little conspiracy. He'd crack Mai sooner or later.

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><p><span>Yasu's case notes<span>

Ah, I wish I'd been there for this. Can you imagine Naru's face if Monk had actually hugged him?

_I saw the look he gave Bou-san here; I'd have backed away too. Slowly, and far._

No you wouldn't. I've seen you hug Naru-chan. He gets this strange look; like he's not sure what to do so he just does nothing and hopes it will stop soon.

_Hey! Naru **likes **when I hug him!_

That's what you think. Although, you are the only person he willingly lets touch him, so maybe you're onto something.

_Of course I am!_

You're also the only person other than Lin and Madoka that can boss him around and get away with it. It's rare, but beautiful when it happens. Ah...

_Er, Yasu? Is there a point to this appendix?_

Hmm? Oh. Right. So, he found out about the play - which I can't **wait** to tell you all about, dear readers, 'cus it was so much fun...

_ For you. Naru didn't enjoy it so much. Because of you, actually._

Yes, that was a rather brilliant day... but it'll take us a while to get there. So, for now...

Next time: Mai ropes Naru into taking her to lunch, and he finds out just what has been bothering her all week.


	5. V1'3 Yet Another Unsolved Mystery

Veritas #1: Nightmares can affect your waking life too

Chapter 3: Yet Another Unsolved Mystery

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><p>Naru had actually managed to lose himself in a report from his father when a knock at the door dragged his attention from his computer. Mai entered without bothering to wait for an invite, as usual, and danced lightly from foot to foot in front of his desk. He sighed. She only did that when she wanted something that she wasn't sure he was going to give.<p>

"What is it?"

"Bou-san and Ayako have gone."

Engrossed in his work, he hadn't heard them leave, but he nodded anyway. He didn't speak though, merely watched her. She hadn't come in just to tell him that. She stayed mute for several seconds before cracking under his gaze.

"Would you help me with the play?"

He blinked. He hadn't been expecting that. Mai apparently took the movement as permission to elaborate.

"I can read it and stuff, that's not a problem, but I'm not sure what all of the words mean, and Sensei said I have to do a 'cockney' accent. I have no idea what that is. Please, Naru?"

Naru sat still for a second, contemplating the pros and cons of this plan. It would take time away from his work schedule, but it would also give him time in which to prise information from Mai. He might also get an answer for that mysterious look she'd given him when he'd asked if she could sing. He nodded and Mai relaxed visibly, beaming at him.

"Thank you, Naru!"

He nodded again and turned back to his report, but Mai didn't move. He looked back up at her curiously. Did she expect him to start now?

"I'm busy, Mai. Why are you hovering?"

She blushed. "Oh, well, it's almost one o'clock, and I forgot to bring lunch with me because of… what happened."

She was referring to whatever had made her blow up at him that morning. Yet another unsolved mystery concerning his assistant. Naru shrugged one shoulder and returned his gaze to the computer screen.

"Then go and buy food from one of the places down the road."

She danced from foot to foot again. Naru minimised the document from his father. He wasn't going to be able to read in peace until she stopped fidgeting.

"Yes, Mai?"

She shuffled a little more, then spoke to the floor. He could just about make out her words.

"You haven't eaten either."

He raised an eyebrow. She was inviting him to lunch? Judging by the colour of her cheeks, she was. He was willing to bet money that Matsuzaki had pushed her into this. Still, it might give him a chance to work out some of what was happening to her. And his lower back was beginning to ache from sitting in one position for so long. He turned the computer off and stood up, making Mai's eyes go very wide. Pretending not to notice, he walked out of the office, pulling his coat from the stand and shrugging it on. Mai followed at a distance, staring at him. He shook his head and took her coat from the rack, holding it out to her. She didn't move. He sighed.

"Are you coming?"

She blinked out of her stupor and ran to him, sliding her arms into the coat and grabbing her bag from the back of her chair. Naru let her exit the building before him and locked up. Mai was still staring at him as though she couldn't quite believe he was there. He rolled his eyes.

"I know I'm good-looking, Mai, but is there a need to stare?"

She huffed and spun around, stalking away from him down the road. He smiled and followed her. That was better.

He didn't manage to get the information he wanted out of Mai – she successfully managed to distract his attention by producing a script from the depths of her bag and roping him into helping her read it. He couldn't bring himself to mind too much - the smile on her face when he complimented her ability to read English was worth it.

Xxx

That Saturday afternoon set up somewhat of a pattern for the following week. Mai would come to the office after class, head directly to the kitchen to make tea for Naru, then hover and generally impede his efforts to work until he conceded and followed her down the street to a café. Mai had, apparently, decided against eating during the day in an attempt to ensure he wouldn't turn her down, as she always ordered actual meals during these trips. He called her an idiot and would have stopped going, but he found Mai was actually correct when she said that this was a better place to practice her English than at the office. For one thing, there were no monk-shaped interruptions. For another, Mai was much more relaxed and content to joke around with him like she did with the monk and Yasuhara. At the office, she only spoke to him to ask questions about work or to shout at him about his tea habits. Here, she was almost his friend. He found that he quite enjoyed the difference.

"So, how do I say this again?" she asked him on Thursday, her nose crinkled up and she leaned over their table and pointed a specific line out to him on the script. He looked at where she pointed and sighed. English Naru may be, but he had never, and would never speak with a convincing cockney accent.

"The rain in Spain falls mainly in the plain" he said slowly in English. She frowned and imitated his intonation. He nodded. "That's it."

She sighed and put the script down on the table, shaking her head. "Why did I think this would be a good idea?"

Naru frowned at her questioningly. Up to this point, she had been excited about the play.

"What's the problem? Your grasp of the language is fine."

She looked up at him, a small smile on her lips at the compliment, then shook her head and sighed again, sounding rather despondent.

"That's not what I meant."

"Then what?"

She didn't answer for several minutes, choosing instead to stare at the script in silence with her brow furrowed. Naru let her sit in silence, then stood and made his way to the counter. He felt her eyes on him, curious. He had accompanied her on these trips, but had only ever ordered iced tea, and he still had a half-full glass on the table. He spoke to the waitress behind the counter, ignored her attempts to flirt with him, then returned to the table and placed a chocolate muffin on the counter in front of Mai. She looked up at him with wide eyes. Ignoring her expression, he sat back down and sipped at his drink.

"Um, thank you?" she said uncertainly. He nodded and locked gazes with her, waiting in silence. She was going to tell him what was bothering her if he had to sit there all evening waiting. She swallowed hard and looked down, breaking a piece off the muffin and eating it slowly. When she reached out for another, he stilled her hand with his own and shook his head.

"Tell me, Mai."

She sighed and dropped her hand, somehow contriving to have it land on top of his on the table. She intertwined their fingers before he could move it, and he glanced at the contact before deciding to ignore it. She seemed pleased at his acceptance.

"Mai?" he prompted. She winced, sighed again, and ran her free hand across the back of her neck before giving in.

"My landlord is a bastard."

He raised an eyebrow at her language. He'd never heard her swear so blatantly when she wasn't in the middle of a row.

"Yes, you said that on Saturday. Why?"

"Because…" she sighed again, letting her face fall into her hand as she squeezed his fingers with the other. He didn't reciprocate, but neither did he pull away; he just sat and waited for her to continue. Finally, with a huff, she continued.

"Because of you, actually."

He blinked at her. "What?"

"Because of you. When I'm not at university, I'm at the office, or I'll be out of the apartment for days when we're on a case. Now I've got the play taking up what time I have left. He's threatening to kick me out."

Naru felt cold anger settle over him. His hand tried to fist, but as Mai's was wrapped around it, he ended up just holding her tighter. He didn't notice.

"He can't do that; you pay your rent, it's nothing to do with him how much time you spend there."

Mai sighed and shook her head. "It's not just that; when I am there, my neighbours complain."

Naru frowned at her again. He couldn't picture Mai upsetting her neighbours; when she wasn't snarling at him like a sabre-toothed tiger, she was very bubbly and generally pleasant to be around.

She closed her eyes, her expression going blank. She'd picked that up from him, and only used it when she felt backed into a corner. She didn't want to tell him this, but he'd left her no alternative.

"My powers don't switch off just because we're not on a case. When I'm not dreaming about the lives of the past residents of the building, I'm reliving old cases. You guys all know why I wake up screaming, but try explaining to your neighbours that you've woken them up at three in the morning because a boy was stabbed three provinces away sixty years ago. They get sick of it."

Naru's hand twitched again, this time pulling her arm across the table towards him. Usually this would have gotten a blush from her, at the very least, but she was too busy trying not to emote to notice. He forced himself to relax, and his hand went limp around hers. Better. With his free hand, he lifted her chin so that she met his gaze. The look in her eyes was an amalgamation of negativity he'd never seen in the happy-go-lucky girl before – sorrow, fear, anxiety, and resignation. He didn't like the twisting feeling in his chest that the look gave him. Shaking his head, he let her go and pushed the muffin towards her. She blinked, stunned back into normality by the suddenness of his actions.

"Naru?" she asked, cautious. He stood and delved into his pocket for cash, throwing enough down on the table to cover their drinks and Mai's food. Folding his wallet away, he met her confused gaze and told her to be at the office at seven thirty the next morning. She wailed at his back as he walked away.

"Naru? Did you hear a word I said? Naru!"

He ignored her, the door to the café swinging shut behind him as he left. He had phone calls to make.

* * *

><p><span>Yasu's case notes<span>

Boy, was Mai pissed after he pulled this.

_Can you blame me? I say all that, and he tells me to get in early then walks off without a word of explanation. He's lucky I didn't follow him and tell him what I thought of him!_

No, instead you call me up and whine for hours about it.

_Whine? Excuse me?_

Err... oops?

_Oops?_

...Here, have a muffin.

_I'm not falling for that one, Yasu._

Are you sure? Moving on quickly...

Next time: Naru interferes in Mai's life, and she's not quite sure how to take it.


	6. V1'4 Deliberately Provocative

Veritas #1: Nightmares can affect your waking life too

Chapter 4: Deliberately Provocative

* * *

><p>Naru got to the office at seven fifteen the next day, feeling tired but victorious. It had taken him most of the night, but he'd gotten what he wanted. Now, he had to talk it through with Mai. He glanced at the clock, mentally calculating the odds on her turning up half an hour early as he'd told her to. Slightly better than fifty-fifty, he reckoned. She'd be mad at him for making demands with no apparent reason behind them, especially given what she'd told him about her landlord making issues, but equally she'd want to see just what required her attention that early in the morning. So, it all came down to just how pissed off at him she was. If her ire was greater than her curiosity, then she could well turn up at half past eight, just to spite him.<p>

It was twenty-five to eight when she trudged through the door, casting Naru a look that promised pain if there wasn't a good reason why she was here. He ignored the glare, standing from the sofa where he'd been sitting and reaching for his coat as she shrugged hers off. Confused, the frown fell from her face. He sighed, pulled her coat back over her shoulders and pushed her lightly out of the door, turning and locking it up behind him. Turning around, he saw the dog-hearing-a-whistle posture she bore as she waited for his actions to make sense. Smirking, he wrapped his fingers around her elbow and gently tugged her away from the building. She stumbled a few steps, then jogged at his side, four paces for every three of his.

"Naru, where are we going?"

He nodded his head towards the car waiting at the curb. It was a cheap, second-hand little black thing, but it was all his father and Lin would allow him until he passed their approval. Apparently, passing the test in both England and Japan wasn't good enough for either of them.

Naru had never been overly bothered by the car they deemed appropriate, so long as nobody at SPR saw it. However, this couldn't be helped. The place he was taking Mai was not within walking distance, and Naru detested the subway. It was always far too crowded for his liking. So, he would have to suffer Mai's appraisal of his car, while coming up with painful ways to kill Lin without getting caught. Her reaction was exactly as he'd pictured it, right down to the wide eyes and smirk tugging at the corners of her lips.

"Naru, is this _yours_? I was expecting something sleek and sexy, and silver. This is…" She trailed off, chuckling. He shot her a glare, opened the driver's door and got in, slamming it behind him. Giggling, Mai scurried around to the other side and let herself in, not bothering to hide her amused expression. Naru turned the engine on and tried to ignore her.

"Buckle up."

She laughed at him, but did so. Shoving the car into gear with more force than strictly necessary, he pulled away from the curb and set off, Mai still snickering at him. She calmed down after a few minutes, asking once again where they were going. Naru didn't answer, instead focussing on getting there unscathed. This stupid ancient car didn't even have power steering. He almost had to wrench his arms from their sockets to get it to turn corners. Mai began to laugh again. Naru seethed silently. Oh, Lin was going to pay when he got back from England.

Ten minutes or so passed in relative quiet until Mai decided that riding in silence was no fun. She reached out to play with the radio, but he slapped her hand away from the device. She pouted at him, rubbed at her fingers, and muttered insults under her breath. So long as she didn't turn the radio on, she could call him what she liked. He couldn't get the bloody thing to tune properly, and every time it was turned on, a horrendous white noise rang through the vehicle and made him want to cover his ears.

"It's broken," he said shortly, cutting her off when she started to repeat herself. She sighed and leaned back in her seat, looking him up and down appraisingly. He raised an eyebrow at her in question.

"What is it, Mai?"

"I was just wondering who you are."

Naru didn't feel a question that idiotic deserved an answer, and turned his attention back to the road. The turning he wanted was up here.

"I mean you can't be Naru," Mai continued, either not noticing his apathy or not caring. "You bought me dinner yesterday, you're actually _socialising_, and now you're whisking me away to some unknown destination for unknown purposes."

Naru tried to ignore Mai's deliberately provocative phrasing and turned into the road he wanted. He pulled to a stop before a block of flats and turned off the engine. Mai pouted at him.

"Ruin my fun," she mumbled, climbing out of the car as he did and walking around to his side. "So, why are we here? Is the place haunted?"

Naru looked at her. "Can you sense a ghost here?"

She shrugged. "No, but then sometimes I can't until they try to kill me, so that doesn't really mean anything."

Naru decided that comment hit a little too close to the truth and didn't reply, instead striding over to the building and pushing the door open. Mai hurried after him, ducking inside under his arm. He walked over to the lifts, acknowledging the guard in the lobby with a quick nod. The man nodded back to him.

"Shibuya-san."

Mai was looking between the two men, obviously wondering how they knew each other. The guard ran an eye over her and smirked, catching Naru's eye and winking. "Miss," he said, his tone failing to hide his amusement. Naru glowered at him and stepped between him and Mai, gaining a chuckle from the guard and a confused look from Mai. He didn't like the way the man was eyeing his assistant. She opened her mouth, presumably to ask what was going on, but the lift arrived and he hustled her inside before she could speak. Naru pressed the button for the fourth floor and got the doors closed before she managed to get the words out.

"Naru, what's going on? How do you know that man?"

Naru sighed. "He is the guard here, Mai. Some important things are kept in this building; he is there to make sure it stays safe. Not to speculate." He muttered the last bit under his breath, but knew Mai had heard from the puckering of her brow. He shook his head. "I live here, Mai."

Mai's eyes went wide and she stuttered. The lift doors opened before she could gather her thoughts, and Naru pulled her out onto the landing. There was a small hallway, with stairs at either end leading to the upper and lower floors, and two doorways before them. Naru went to the one on the left, with a number six on it, pulled a key from the ring he carried with him and unlocked it. Mai was still stood dumbly, staring at him as if he'd grown a second head, so he grabbed her by the elbow and tugged her inside. She blinked and looked around as he shut the door behind them. Her expression changed to one of bewilderment.

"Um, Naru, you live _here_?"

The apartment was empty of furniture, decoration and even light fixtures. He sighed.

"No, Mai. I live on the floor above. This apartment is empty for the moment."

She looked at him, still confused. "Then why are we here?"

He shook his head. "Why do you think, Mai?"

He saw her expression change as she suddenly understood. Her mouth formed an almost perfect 'O' shape, and her eyes went wide as she cast another look around.

Naru had only been inside Mai's apartment once, when she slipped getting out of the bath and dislocated her knee. She had managed to reach her phone and call him, and he and Lin had gone around to collect her and take her to the hospital. He had been a little more preoccupied by the towel-clad Mai than the apartment at the time, but he knew that this living room alone was bigger than her whole place. There were four doors off the main room, leading to a kitchen, a bathroom and two sizeable bedrooms. He knew because the apartment he shared with Lin had the exact same layout.

Mai looked back to him and swallowed.

"I can't, Naru. I can't afford this."

He looked at her and quoted a monthly rental that made her choke on a breath. He rolled his eyes and waited for her to regain her breath. Honestly, she could be so dramatic.

"I can't let you do that!" she said finally, taking his sleeve in her hand and tugging at it lightly. "That's only about half what I'm paying at the moment, and this place is huge! It has to worth five times that! I can't Naru, sorry. I'll find somewhere else to live."

She was worried about ripping him off? Naru had to smirk at that. "I don't own it, Mai."

She blinked and let go of his sleeve, once again confused. "Huh?"

"I don't own it. This whole building belongs to BSPR."

"Oh, well then, your parents…"

"Would rather see this place with a tenant than empty," he interrupted. She frowned at him, but didn't say anything more. He closed his eyes shook his head. "Please, Mai, at least think about it."

He opened his eyes to see her staring at him. He frowned at her. "What?"

"Did… did you just say please?"

He rolled his eyes and turned around, making to leave the apartment. If she was going to behave like a child, then he had better things to do elsewhere. She dodged in front of him, making him rock back on his heels in order to not knock her over.

"Sorry Naru, I didn't mean it like that!" she squeaked, waving her arms at him. Annoyed at her sudden exuberance, he leaned back to avoid being hit.

"Then what?"

She fell silent for a few seconds before looking up at him from beneath her lashes. "You want me to stay?"

He blinked at her. Had he said that? Well, in a roundabout way he supposed he had. He hadn't been thinking about it like that; Mai needed somewhere to stay, there was an apartment empty in his building, so he called his parents and told them the situation. They were the ones who had asked him why his 'pretty little assistant' wasn't already living there. He'd taken that as a 'we were saving that room for Mai anyway' and proceeded to make the other calls he'd needed to ensure that she would be alright, including a rather long and mildly threatening one to her current landlord. Whatever she chose, he would not be causing her any more problems.

He realised that she was still waiting for an answer and shrugged one shoulder.

"You can take it, or you can stay where you are. Your landlord won't bother you again. It's up to you."

Mai flushed. "You spoke to my landlord?"

Naru shot her a look. What was wrong with that? He was trying to help, and she was acting like he'd done something unbelievable. Mai shook her head and dropped the landlord issue. Naru nodded and stepped around her, walking towards the door.

"You can let me know by the end of next week."

She followed him from the room, and judging by her face she was weighing up the pros and cons of taking him up on his offer. He predicted the next questions she fired at him with ease.

"How would I get to work?"

"Lin and I will take you."

She grumbled at that. Naru smirked. She'd never be late again, at least. She looked back up, readying her next enquiry as they stepped into the lift.

"What about university?"

"The bus stops directly in front of the building."

She frowned at him. "You've got this all sussed out, don't you?"

He shrugged and turned to face the doors. "I usually do."

She pulled a disgusted face at him and didn't reply. He was used to her distain when he had already anticipated all the problems she could think of, so ignored it. They left the building in silence, broken by the guard (Naru had no idea of the man's name, and after today, no intention of learning it either) calling a goodbye after them. Mai waved at him, but Naru ignored it and got into the car. They were halfway back to SPR before Mai spoke again.

"You never answered me."

He blinked. She hadn't asked him a question, and she was well aware that he was not telepathic, so he had no idea why she thought he would know what she was talking about. She squinted at him, her head tilted to one side.

"Do you want me to stay?"

Oh, that. He thought he'd sidestepped that issue.

"That's your decision, Mai. You're the one who has to live there."

"That's not what I asked. Do you want me to live there?"

Naru could see where she was going with this; given her behaviour over the last week or so it wasn't hard to spot. He rolled his eyes.

"So long as you have a roof over your head, Mai, I don't care where you live."

She huffed and gave up, crossing her arms and staring out of the window for the remainder of the drive back. He smirked at her. It wasn't the last time she would try sounding out his feelings, he knew, but hopefully by then he would have a better understanding himself of what they were. Currently, he wasn't quite sure.

Xxx

Once they had returned to the office, the atmosphere between them had returned to normal. He had asked for tea, she had obliged, grumbling under her breath and waiting in front of his desk for a thank you that wasn't forthcoming, then she had returned to her filing and he to researching a potential case. By twelve fifteen, he had read enough to convince him of its authenticity and stuck his head out of the office to instruct Mai to call the client and accept. She was asleep on her desk, twitching every now and then and frowning intently. He walked to her side and shook her shoulder.

"Mai," he called. She twitched again and came awake with a start, sitting bolt upright and looking around, wide-eyed. Naru jerked backwards to avoid behind head-butted in the nose. Her breathing slowed and she closed her eyes as she realised where she was.

"Mai, are you alright?"

She looked at him over her shoulder, trying to smile. "Yeah, fine. Sorry Naru, I didn't sleep well last night. It won't happen again."

Naru brushed her apology aside, leaning against her desk and forcing her to meet his gaze with a hand under her chin. "What happened?"

She laughed shakily and stood, pulling away. "Nothing. I'll just make you some tea…"

"Mai."

She sighed and stopped trying to escape. "Urado," she said with a shudder. Naru felt his eyes widen. That case had been almost three years ago. She still had nightmares about it? Swallowing surreptitiously, he moved his grip from her chin to her shoulder and squeezed lightly.

"Are you alright?"

She nodded, smiling more genuinely this time.

"You woke me up before the throat-slitting part. I'll be ok."

The fact that she could say that so casually told him how often she'd had that same dream. He gripped her shoulder again, upset on her behalf that she had to keep reliving that over and over. He had first-hand experience in recurring nightmares, but he hadn't dreamt of Gene's death in almost two years now. His dreams had stopped after the funeral, when he'd come back to Japan. He wasn't sure how to help Mai with hers. He could monitor her caseload, he supposed, but she'd never forgive him for that. Besides, despite the lack of control she had over her abilities, he found himself relying on them to help the majority of cases along. Without Mai, it would take twice as long to gather information. He would make do without her if he had to, however.

"Would you like me to take you off field work for a while?"

Her eyes widened and she shook her head vigorously.

"No! No, don't do that! See, this is why I didn't say anything…"

Naru let his hand run down off her shoulder to her upper arm. She stopped talking and squeaked at the sensation.

"I won't stop you," he said quietly, "but if this becomes too much, you will let me know."

"Naru…"

"I won't have this job drive you insane. It's not worth that."

He was still talking quietly, but his words were firm. He would not risk Mai's health. If he thought she couldn't handle it, he would stop her going on high-risk cases. She nodded at him silently. Relieved to have her agreement (it made everything much easier if she wasn't fighting him every step of the way), he relaxed. His hand slid down her arm until her fingers snared his own and held them in place. She leaned closer, eyes half closing.

"Naru," she breathed. He closed his eyes for a moment, then leaned back and broke free. She stumbled and blinked rapidly at the loss of his touch. He threw her coat at her, pulling his own on over his shoulders.

"Where are we going?" she asked, mimicking his actions. He smirked at her.

"Lunch."

He strode out of the office, catching the grin she shot after him. He locked up and walked off with her, allowing her to loop her arm through his as they bickered.

"Can you go over my lines with me again?"

"I suppose so. Are you ever going to practice the songs?"

"In front of you? Hah, you must be joking."

He raised an eyebrow at her.

"I'll hear you sooner or later; did you really think I'd go through all this and then not go to the performance?"

She chuckled at him.

"Yeah, but then it'll be too late for you to comment and make me all nervous about singing in public."

"I wouldn't do that. I'm trying to help you, remember?"

"Yeah I know." Silence for a few heartbeats, then Mai stopped and pressed a kiss to his cheek. "Thanks."

Stunned by her brashness, he could only follow as she led him into the usual café, to what he was beginning to think of as 'their' table. They ordered and sat down; Mai pulled out her script and placed it between them on the table, then spoke quietly, looking at the paper.

"And about the apartment?"

He looked at her searchingly. She smiled at him.

"I'll take it."

* * *

><p><span>Yasu's case notes<span>

All together now: Aww...

_Shut up Yasu._

No, I want to mock. For a smart guy, Naru can sure be dense. Honestly, all that, and he's not sure how he feels? Are you sure you transcribed this properly, Mai?

_Yes I'm sure._

Positive?

_YES_

Oh, good. Then tell us all about the part where you were naked and Naru came over?

_YASU!_

What? I'm sure our readers want to know...

_Move on. Now._

Err, she's giving me that look Naru gets just before he lets his PK explode something. I'm going to run away now.

Next time: Ok, truth number two is up! This time, we're going with 'Heels add oomph to any outfit'.

_Yasu!_

What? It's true! Anyway, it starts off with a phone call from a mother and a case from a priest. See you there!


	7. V2'1 Doesnt Seem To Be Malicious

Veritas #2: Heels add oomph to any outfit

Chapter 1: Doesn't Seem To Be Malicious

* * *

><p>Naru and Mai got so engrossed in their 'lunch' that it was almost half past two before they realised how long they'd been sitting in the café. Mai had a rehearsal at three. She jumped to her feet, cursing lightly as she reached into her purse to pay. Naru beat her to it, throwing money onto the table without counting it and probably leaving a very generous tip in the process. Mai thanked him, kissed his cheek again, then ran from the café while stuffing her script into her bag. Naru followed at a more sedate pace.<p>

"Mai," he called after her, causing her to stop running down the road and turn to face him.

"What is it?"

"Do you want a lift?"

Did he actually just say that? Well, she'd already seen the car, and she was going to be gone for three hours anyway, so he might as well. She smiled at him, shaking her head and laughing.

"No thanks, Naru, I'll run it; after all the eating out I've been doing this week, I could do with the exercise. I'll be back in the office by six?"

He nodded and watched her turn and run away. On a Friday, Naru usually kept the office open until eight or so, when the weekend party crowd began to show up in the district. Mai, who had no classes on Fridays this semester and so had agreed to work all day, would generally go from work to meet a friend – Michiru, Naru thought the other girl's name was – and join the clubbers while Naru and Lin went home. She was yet to show up on Saturday with a hangover, so he had no objection.

However, he and Lin had both taken to spending the last quarter of an hour of Friday evenings locked in their offices, as Mai had a habit of changing into her evening wear at SPR. After walking in on her wearing a dress that had to be illegal in several countries while she zipped a pair of knee-high boots up her legs, neither of them was willing to risk walking around in case she had something else heart-attack-inducing on. Mai may dress practically around the office, but when she dressed for a night out, she really went for it. Naru had never asked how her night was, as he doubted he wanted to hear the details.

Walking back to SPR, Naru re-opened the office and checked the answer machine – no messages from clients, but one from Monk who wanted to know where Mai was in the middle of the day, and instructed her to call him back. Naru left it on there for the girl to find and sat in his office, only remembering the client he'd decided to accept when his computer booted up. Mai's nightmare and the subsequent conversation had driven it clear out of his head.

In Mai's absence, he graced the client with a rare phone call from the boss himself, got the rest of the details he needed, and made a list for Mai's return of people to call and the information they'd need. The phone rang as he was placing it on her desk, so he answered the handset that rested there.

"Shibuya Psychic Research."

"Noll! How are you? What are you doing answering your own phone?"

Naru winced and sat down in Mai's chair. Where was the girl when he needed her to screen his calls?

"Hello Mother. I'm alright; how are you?"

"Fine, fine. How's your pretty little assistant?"

Naru rolled his eyes. That didn't take long. She wasn't even trying to be subtle.

"Mai is fine. She's at university at the moment."

"Oh, so that's why you're answering. I thought maybe she was ill; I was going to send flowers. Maybe I should anyway…"

"Mother," Naru interrupted, reminded of why he avoided calls from Luella Davis whenever he could. His father, he could talk to on the phone, but his mother was a nightmare. "Why did you call?"

"Oh, right. Lin's plane just left. You have the flight details for when he arrives?"

Naru sighed. "Yes, but he won't be getting here until late. He's finding his own way back from the airport."

"It was nice to see him again, even if it was only for a week. You should come with him next time, Noll; you haven't come home in so long now. You could bring pretty Mai with you."

Naru gritted his teeth. He did not, under any circumstances, want Mai to actually meet his mother. The pair of them talking on the phone was bad enough; Mai would look at him sideways and giggle to herself for hours after those conversations. He dreaded to think what would happen if they met in person.

Luella had seen photographs of Mai, and evidently Lin had been telling tales on him, because ever since Mai was first mentioned, she had been dropping 'hints' that she would quite like Naru to think about dating her. After speaking to her on the phone, Luella had apparently decided that Mai was perfect, and took great pains to point out all her good features to Naru, who was already well aware of them all and got very annoyed very quickly. He had refused to take calls from Luella for a month after that, and she hadn't been quite so blatant since. She did, however, always refer to Mai as 'pretty'. It was her not-so-subtle way of reminding Naru how much she liked the girl.

"I don't think so, Mother. We have responsibilities here."

"Oh, but Mai was telling me how much she wanted to see England! She's been learning the language you know; she's very good. Coming over here would only help her with that."

"Mother…"

"And it will be good for you both to get away from work for a while. You need a break every now and then, Noll. Besides, your father and I miss you."

Naru sighed. There was only one way to get out of this.

"I'll think about it," he said. His mother would take it as a 'yes, we're coming', but that couldn't be helped. It was the only way to make her stop pestering him about it.

The door opened and John Brown walked in, smiling at Naru. Naru nodded back, mentally praising the priest's timing.

"I have to go, Mother, somebody just came into the office."

"Well, alright Noll, be careful! Love you!"

"You too," he said softly, hanging up. His mother was 'nutty as a fruitcake', to use his father's phrasing, but he did love her. He just couldn't stand her sometimes. She was too… eccentric didn't begin to cover it.

"I didn't mean to interrupt, Naru," John began. Naru shook his head, moving from Mai's desk to sit beside the priest on the sofa.

"You didn't. What did you need?"

Unlike Monk and Matsuzaki, John didn't have an irritating tendency to drop by SPR for no particular reason. Out of all the Irregulars he had on retainer, Naru respected him the most. He was good at what he did, and he didn't make a big fuss about it. Naru liked that.

"I'm here on behalf of a friend of mine. She has a problem with a ghost that keeps possessing her children. It's not been harmful; it seems just to want to play, but she's worried about what might happen if one of them stays possessed for too long. Exorcising it only stops the problem for so long; I can't convince the spirit to move on."

Naru nodded, cutting John off before he could go any further. "I'm aware of this case; I just called to tell her that we will be there on Monday. Mai will call everyone when she gets back."

John smiled at him and nodded his thanks. "She'll be relieved to have it gone. It doesn't seem to be malicious, but she's scared none-the-less."

"You will come with us?" Naru asked. He hadn't counted on John having met this spirit before, but it would be helpful. The client was also likely to be more accommodating with John there, which was half the battle already won. Sometimes, the clients could be more trouble than the ghosts.

John nodded. "Of course, I wouldn't miss it. Life's actually a little boring without Mai calling me for cases all the time."

Naru nodded. He knew how that felt – it was, after all, why he made a habit of irking Mai when they were around the office.

"Where is Mai?" John asked. Naru looked at the clock. It was close to four o'clock.

"At a rehearsal. She should be back in a couple of hours."

John frowned for a minute, then brightened. "Oh yes, Monk told me about that! It's an English musical, he said."

"My Fair Lady. Mai got the lead."

John whistled. "That's not going to be easy. Even for a native speaker, that's a tough part. Can she sing?"

Naru chuckled. "I have no idea. She just smiles when I ask. I assume so, or I doubt they would have given her the part."

"When is it on?"

Naru gave John the details, and the priest thanked him and stood.

"I have to go now; tell Mai I said congratulations?"

Naru nodded. John waved and left, shutting the door behind him. Naru sat in silence for a moment, then stood and relocated to his office. He had two hours or so of quiet in which to work, and he intended to put them to good use.

* * *

><p><span>Yasu's case notes<span>

Ah, Luella. I love her so much. She gives me so much material to use against the Boss-man.

_And everyone else too._

Hang on a minute; she tells you things about people other than Naru? Like Lin? She gave you dirt on Lin-san? Why didn't she tell **me**?

_I suspect your theatrics might have something to do with it, Yasu. I, at least, know when to be discreet._

What? I'm sorry, say that again. I think I misheard you.

_Ha ha, you're so witty. Can we move on?_

Right.

Next time: It's Friday evening; Naru really should have kept his door locked.


	8. V2'2 Sexed Up

Veritas #2: Heels add oomph to any outfit

Chapter 2: Sexed Up

* * *

><p>Mai waltzed through the door to SPR at ten minutes after six, humming to herself. Had Naru not been en route to the kitchen as she did so, he never would have heard it. He raised an eyebrow at her as she saw him and stopped.<p>

"Oh, hi Naru."

"Mai."

She grinned and bounced lightly as she passed him to her desk. She was in a good mood. The rehearsal must have gone well. He watched as she dropped her bag over the back of her chair and examined the note he'd written her. She looked up at him over her shoulder.

"You took the case then?"

He nodded. "Call the others. We start on Monday."

"Ok," she grinned, sitting and picking up the phone. He left her to it and continued to the kitchen, making two cups of tea and leaving one at her elbow as he passed. She looked up at him with wide eyes, currently on the phone to Monk. He ignored her gaze and returned to his office, sipping at the tea while he finished reading a file his father had sent him. He only had a page left; he should be able to finish by the time Mai was done on the phone and came to investigate. He grimaced, looking at the cup in his hand. And then she could make him some proper tea; he was perfectly willing to acknowledge that she was better at that than he could ever hope to be.

Mai walked in as he was reading the last paragraph. He held up one hand, keeping her quiet as he finished, then dropped it as he lowered the paper to the desk. "Yes, Mai?"

She blinked at him. He sipped at his tea innocently. She shook her head at him.

"Bou-san and Ayako will be here at nine thirty on Monday."

"Good. Did you call Yasuhara-san?"

"He's going to meet us there; he has lectures he can't get out of until eleven."

Naru nodded; he'd expected as much. Yasuhara's final year of university was keeping him very busy.

"What about you?" he asked Mai. He knew she had lectures to attend in the early afternoon, but on occasion she had been known to skip lectures in order to work a case. She shrugged.

"I'll see what happens when we get there. Provided I don't get possessed or have a dream, I'll go to class in the afternoon."

Naru nodded. Mai was silent for a heartbeat, then leaned forward with her hands on his desk.

"What's the tea for? Not that I'm complaining, 'cus hey, it's about time you made some, but I was wondering."

Naru just smirked at her. The tea was because he was making some anyway, and it seemed like a good way to confuse Mai. He wasn't about to cite that as his reason though. Enigmatic expressions would be quite answer enough. Mai scowled when she realised that was all the response she was going to get.

"Fine, thank you. See, Naru, how I said that? And it didn't kill me?"

Rolling his eyes, Naru picked up the report he'd been reading and set about shuffling the pages into order. Mai hovered for a second more, then leaned across the desk, pushed the papers away from Naru's face and gently kissed the end of his nose. He blinked at her, shocked. He hadn't been expecting that. She giggled and leaned back.

"Thank you, Naru."

She sashayed out of his office and shut the door behind her. Naru couldn't do much beside watch her leave. Finally, he shook his head and scowled. He blamed the miko for Mai's sudden change in attitude; she had never been this bold before.

Xxx

Mai brought him a new cup of tea without being asked about half an hour later. He was getting ahead in his research of the house for the case on Monday and didn't acknowledge her. She huffed loudly; he ignored her. Finally, after over a minute, she coughed pointedly. He spoke to her without looking away from the screen.

"What is it, Mai?"

"Michiru just called me; she wants to know if I can meet her an hour earlier. Which would mean leaving in ten minutes or so."

Naru looked up at her, but didn't speak. He didn't have to; if he kept silent long enough, Mai would do all the talking for him. She sighed.

"Please, Naru? I know you don't normally close until eight, but nobody comes in that late anyway, and I don't have much to do out there now; if I run a duster over the shelves I'm done. I'd just be sitting around wasting time. And I did come in early this morning."

"To see a new apartment."

"But I didn't know that."

She was making a good argument. Naru considered for a moment, then nodded.

"Fine. I'll see you here at eight tomorrow morning."

She beamed at him and started bouncing again as she left the room.

"Thanks Naru!"

He shook his head and returned to his research. He hadn't gotten much done when Mai opened the door to his office again.

"Bye, Naru."

He waved a hand in her direction, still reading. She tutted, and he looked up, annoyed.

"Wha…"

She was wearing a black dress with a round neck and long sleeves. The material at her wrists was almost as long as the rest of the dress. It barely reached her mid-thigh. Naru was accustomed to seeing Mai in skirts, but she wasn't usually quite this sexed up. The heels probably had something to do with it. He blinked, cleared his throat, and forced his eyes to her face. She was smirking at him. Yes, this was definitely the miko's fault.

"What do you want?" he asked when he could speak without coughing. Mai's smirk widened and she stalked towards him around the desk. He tried not to look at the swing of her hips.

"I was wondering, since you've been in a social mood lately, if you wanted to join us?"

"I don't think so," he said, keeping his eyes locked with hers. As long as he didn't look south of her face, he could keep his normal composure. "I have work to do."

"Didn't stop you earlier," she pointed out, resting her hip against his desk and leaning down so their faces were level. He refused to fall for the bait.

"I said no, Mai."

She blinked at his refusal, then nodded slowly and stood back upright.

"Ok then. Never mind. Goodnight, Naru."

She was sulking. Well, serve her right. She should know better than to bait him like that.

"Goodnight, Mai," he said a little coldly as he turned back to his computer. She walked out of the office without another word (and minus the swaying, he noticed. Not that he was looking). He heard the front door shut a few seconds later. Exhaling shakily, he shook his head, running a hand through his hair. Next time he saw Matsuzaki, he was going to kill her.

* * *

><p><span>Yasu's case notes<span>

Boss-man made you tea?

_He did._

Did you drink it?

_No. I value my taste buds._

Fair point. Why are you looking at me like that?

_I'm surprised you're not teasing me about the dress._

Nah; I've seen the dress. I do wish I'd seen Naru's face though. He really stammered? Why does everything happen when I'm not there?

Next time: Mai winds Naru up to almost breaking point.


	9. V2'3 Call It Even

Veritas #2: Heels add oomph to any outfit

Chapter 3: Call It Even

* * *

><p>Mai was waiting outside SPR when Naru arrived the next morning. He paused when he saw her sitting beside the door, then decided against acknowledging the incident the previous day. He strode up to the door and unlocked it, watching as she shoved herself to her feet before following him inside. She dropped her bag and coat onto the sofa without a word and headed directly to the kitchen; he heard the kettle clanking and surmised that this was some kind of apology for yesterday's behaviour. He left her to it and went to his office, turning the computer on and settling in his chair. Mai knocked on the open door and hesitated outside it, eyeing him nervously. He waved her inside. Sighing, she came up to the desk and pushed a cup of tea across to him. There were biscuits on the saucer. He raised an eyebrow at her. She blushed, understanding the unasked question.<p>

"I made them. I've been up since five, so I did some baking. I figured the neighbours were already annoyed with me, so maybe the smell would calm them down. Then I thought you might like them."

She waited a few seconds longer, watching him, then she looked down and scuffed her toe along the carpet.

"Naru, I'm sorry about last night. I was out of line. It won't happen again."

He nodded and reached out, taking a biscuit from the saucer. She smiled at the implied forgiveness and whispered "thank you" to him before backing out and shutting the door behind her. He watched her leave then took a bite. It was actually quite good.

The rest of the day went downhill rather rapidly.

Mai had apparently decided that the best way to show that she was serious was to do exactly as Naru expected, before he expected it done. Three times she brought him tea just as he was about to call for her to make some; she brought him the files he had detailed to her yesterday without any prompting, and she tidied the entire office from top to bottom. It was like watching a robot version of his assistant. She was utterly efficient and tidy and, as much as Naru liked those qualities in himself, she was driving him nuts. She was replacing his tea for the fourth time when he snapped.

"I didn't ask for more tea."

She flinched like he'd struck her and backed out of the room, apologising. Naru sighed and got to his feet, following her into the main office. She refused to meet his eyes. He shook his head.

"Mai, look at me."

She did so grudgingly, and he could see a look of resignation in her eyes. He took a step closer to her and took her chin in his hand so she couldn't look away.

"Stop it. I'm not angry at you."

She closed her eyes and exhaled shakily.

"I know. I am. I let them get to me, and you were being so nice… I'm an idiot."

"Yes, but that's nothing new."

Her eyes flew open at the insult, indignation overcoming the pathetic look. Naru smiled, his barb having achieved the desired result.

"That's better. I knew you were in there somewhere."

She froze for a second, then relaxed and smiled back.

"Sorry."

"I know."

There was several seconds silence, and Naru saw Mai's eyes flick down to his mouth and back. His own followed suit. She was wearing gloss of some kind; her lips shimmered in the artificial light like water. His free hand clenched at his side.

She leaned in closer, stopped, then sighed and went to move away. He held her in place for three heartbeats, breathing heavily, then closed his eyes and dropped her chin. She stepped back, and he heard her move into the kitchen and shut the door, in all likelihood so that she could hyperventilate in private. Naru berated himself silently, his nails digging into his palms as he tried to calm down. Once his breathing had returned to normal, he opened his eyes and retreated to his office, shutting the door behind him and leaning against it lightly. The point of going out there was to make things less awkward between them. He sighed and shook his head.

"Idiot."

Xxx

Naru had kept to himself in his office all day since the incident earlier. Mai had avoided him like the plague, and he was actually rather grateful for her absence as it made working through just what had happened much easier.

He couldn't believe he'd almost kissed her. He had told her off for her behaviour last night, and there he was acting like a teenager on his first date. The situation couldn't be more awkward if Yasuhara had walked in on their little moment. At least the boy would make jokes about it, which would lighten the atmosphere. They would probably be better able to talk to each other if he'd just gone through with it and kissed her – at least then she'd be talking to him.

So then, why hadn't he?

Because he still wasn't sure quite what he felt for her, he realised. He hated psychoanalysing himself, but in this case it was a necessary evil.

He wasn't worried about being rejected – Mai had made it abundantly obvious that she had feelings for him. It was his own emotions that were confusing him. His feelings for Mai were beyond that of co-workers, or even friends, but he wasn't quite sure how far beyond. If this wasn't the kind of thing that had the potential to last, he would tear apart his carefully crafted team, as well as break Mai's and probably his mother's hearts. He wasn't willing to do that.

So, he had backed away and made an idiot of himself in the process. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He had to fix this before Monday, or the entire team would feel the tension and start asking questions. He could silence them with a glare, but Mai would tell somebody – likely the monk or miko – what had happened, and then the whole team would know. Aside from the loss of productivity he knew would result, he had to make sure Lin didn't hear about it; the last thing he needed was the Chinese man tattling to his mother.

Slowly, with all the enthusiasm of a man walking to the gallows, he stood and walked to the office door, pulling it open to see Mai sitting on the sofa with her head low, studying her script. She looked up as she heard the office door open, flushing even before she met his eyes.

"N… Naru!"

He sighed and sat beside her, ignoring her uncomfortable shuffling as he did so. She didn't move away from him, which was a good sign, but she dropped her gaze and began to fiddle with the script, which was not. Naru was very glad that Lin had gotten in so late last night; he would sleep most of the day and was not going to be back at SPR until Monday. That was plenty of time for him to sort this out.

"Mai, I'm sorry."

She blinked and looked at him, not expecting the apology. True, he didn't do so often, but then he didn't normally foul up to the degree where it became necessary.

"I shouldn't have behaved as I did. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable."

She continued to watch him in silence for several seconds, apparently still processing the fact that he was admitting he was wrong. He was beginning to get annoyed by her lack of response when she finally spoke.

"So, are you apologising for almost kissing me, or for not kissing me?"

It was his turn to be confused. Why did she insist on reading things into his comments? She must have read the look on his face, because she rolled her eyes and muttered "never mind" under her breath. She recovered from her ire quickly and turned a smile on him.

"I was stupid last night; you were this morning. How about we call it even?"

Surprised at her maturity over the matter, he nodded. She was willing to ignore it altogether, which was far more than he'd hoped for. Looking happy at his approval, she nodded back and looked back down to her script, which was beginning to get rather crumpled from the number of times she'd stuffed it into her bag. It was open to song lyrics and Mai, probably unaware that she was doing so, trilled the tune in the back of her throat as she read them through. Naru had heard her humming briefly the day before, but she had cut off before he could hear the tune properly. Sitting this close to her, he could hear that she was, in fact, in tune. He listened to her humming the song, not realising that he was staring until her gaze met his own.

"Naru? What is it?"

He flashed a genuine smile at her before pushing to his feet.

"You were singing."

She blushed again. Naru turned and headed back to his office. Her voice stopped him before he entered.

"What… what do you think?"

He looked at her over his shoulder and nodded.

"Very good."

She blushed harder and he turned back around, walking to his desk.

"Tea, Mai."

There was a stunned silence for a few seconds, then Mai stalked off to the kitchen, grumbling. Naru smirked and returned to work, and this time he was able to concentrate.

* * *

><p><span>Yasu's case notes<span>

Very mature, Mai. I'm disappointed in you.

_...What?_

You had a golden opportunity to torment the Boss-man for the rest of his life, and you threw it away!

_I have to work in the same office as him. Every day. He's bad enough when he's being civil; if I held it over his head, I wouldn't last a week before I had to find a new job. Besides, this way had its perks._

'Perks' she says. Is that how you're describing it?

_Yes, yes it is. Stop talking now, before you say something you shouldn't._

Fine. Next time: Time for truth number three! 'Children like Mai'.

_That's it? After all that, that's the title you went with?_

Hey, it's true, and this case is a perfect example of that.

_And it's an actual case this time, not one that Yasu made up._

I did not make them up; they were in Naru's journal. If he left it lying around carelessly…

_Locked in the drawer of his desk…_

… then that's his own fault. Anyway, next time Naru gets serious and Kitty runs away.


	10. V3'0 Tell Me Immediately

Veritas #3: Children like Mai

Prologue: Tell Me Immediately

* * *

><p>By the time everyone was assembled at SPR on Monday morning, Naru and Mai's relationship had returned to normal. He did catch her looking at him from the corner of her eye a few times and smirking to herself, but she didn't say anything, and Lin, who was more observant that any of the Irregulars gave him credit for, hadn't noticed anything off about their behaviour. If the Chinese man didn't think there was anything odd going on, then none of the others would.<p>

Naru emerged from his office at twenty to ten, shushing the already raucous monk and shoving a camera into his arms.

"Help Lin load the van," he said, as if he hadn't just knocked the breath from the older man, then turned and indicated the remaining boxes of equipment with a wave of his hand. Lin lifted a monitor to carry down, as did John. Matsuzaki gathered a coil of cable and followed them. Naru caught Mai's arm as she bent to pick up a microphone and pulled her to one side.

"If you need to take a break from this case, at any point, you will tell me immediately," he said, catching her gaze so she understood that he was serious. She opened her mouth to complain, so he squeezed her arm lightly. She shut up and let him finish.

"The spirit has so far only possessed children, so it is likely a child itself. The way they behave while possessed also points to the spirit being young. My research has not turned up any child deaths on the property, so it is likely connected some other way, but that means I don't know how it died."

Mai swallowed. His fingers tightened around her arm, pulling her marginally closer.

"If you have to leave the case, tell me immediately. Do you understand me, Mai?"

She nodded. Glad that she got the point, he nodded and released her, turning away as the others returned to gather the rest of the equipment. He had given her similar warnings before, but never meant them quite as seriously as he did this time. Mai liked children, and they liked her. The likelihood of this spirit taking a shine to her was much higher than he was happy with, and he was not about to put her in danger because she was compassionate. He didn't think that the ghost would harm her, but dreams of its death certainly would. She had more than enough nightmare-inducing material already. He would spare her this one, if she would let him.

Ignoring the looks the monk and miko traded when they saw how close he was standing to Mai, he stalked past them to the van, which Lin and John were packing the last of the equipment into. Mai would lock up. Lin shut the door and turned to climb into the driver's seat. Naru stopped him with a look, speaking loud enough for John to hear also, but careful to ensure that Mai would not.

"Keep an eye on Mai. If I am correct, and this spirit is a child, she'll have a hard time with this case."

The two men didn't need any more encouragement. Both nodded at him. He wasn't the only one who knew how hard-headed Mai could be; just because she said she would tell him if she needed to leave, that didn't mean that she wouldn't torture herself with visions for a while first in an attempt to help. He couldn't keep an eye on her the whole time, but he could make sure that she was never alone. The monk and miko wouldn't need to be told to keep an eye on the girl; they already hovered over her like over-protective parents. Likewise, Yasuhara tended to spend a lot of his time on cases with Mai, joking and playing pranks to keep her mood up. Hara would have required telling, but she would not be joining them on this case.

Now twenty years old and with the grace and beauty those extra years had granted her, Hara had become very popular in America, and spent a good deal of her time in the other country. She was currently in the middle of a three-month tour around some of the southernmost states, which was annoying. Naru would have liked her services for this case; Hara didn't have Mai's maternal tendencies, but she was always compassionate to the spirits and would probably have been an asset.

Mai, Monk and Matsuzaki trailed towards them from the office. Naru made sure that Monk knew where they were going, then gestured for everyone to get in the relevant vehicles. Mai jumped into the van beside Lin as the others wandered off to Monk's car, and Naru followed her in, shutting the door. Lin waited for the Irregulars to get settled into the other car, then pulled away from the curb, leading the way to the client's house.

Xxx

The boy ran down the garden, chasing the ball that rolled away from him. It hit the cat that had been sleeping in a patch of sunlight, waking it instantly and making it jump and hiss. The boy giggled as it turned and ran away into the trees at the end of the garden. He picked up his ball, then ran back towards the house where his father was waiting.

"Kitty ran away," he chuckled, handing the ball back. His father laughed with him, ruffling his hair.

"Yes she did, but she'll come back."

The boy nodded, glad that he hadn't scared the cat off for good. He would miss Kitty if she was gone.

* * *

><p><span>Yasu's case notes<span>

Ok, I know, it's another short one, I'm sorry, but the next chapter will more than make up for it; it's brilliant!

_You're just saying that 'cus of what happens to Naru._

Yes. Problem?

_... Fair enough._

Next time: The client's children are the cutest things Mai has ever seen, and Mai dupes Naru brilliantly.


	11. V3'1 Boys Are Smelly

A/N: Hey guys, I'm glad so many of you like this story and are reading it; thank you to everyone who's reviewed and added it to favourites or alerts. I'm afraid this will be the last update for a few weeks, as I am a final year university student, and my lecturers thought it would be fun to put my dissertation and all my coursework deadlines within three days of each other, so I need to focus on work. There will be updates once my dissertation is sorted; expect a new chapter in early May. It will be on a Monday again, and I promise it will be a good one. For now, enjoy this one and I hope to see you all again on the other side. Thank you.

Liris  
>xxx<p>

* * *

><p><span>Veritas #3: Children like Mai<span>

Chapter 1: Boys Are Smelly

* * *

><p>The journey to the house took about fifteen minutes, most of which Mai spent leaning against Naru's shoulder as she read the notes he'd made for everyone. He wasn't sure if she was doing it on purpose or not; as they'd aged and grown, the previously roomy front seat had forced them closer together. Well, alright, Mai hadn't grown all that much, but Naru had filled out some and his shoulders were broader than they had been four years ago. Often, Mai would brush against him as the van turned corners. She'd never leaned on him quite as fully as she was now, though whether she was trying to bait him or was just being lazy, he wasn't sure.<p>

He reread the case notes over her shoulder. The client was a young woman called Izami Anna, an Australian by birth who had moved to Japan with her husband to raise their three children. The two oldest were boys; Ken, aged nine, and Rin, who was a year younger. The youngest child was a girl, Naomi, who was barely six years old. Naru was going to leave dealing with the children to Mai; she was far better at it than any of the others on his team.

The family had moved to Japan three months ago, and almost immediately the possessions had started. Naru was suspicious about this; there was normally a build-up to a spirit possessing people, and the client hadn't made any note of that at all. There was something off about this case, and they hadn't even started it yet.

Mai leaned off him when Lin pulled onto the driveway of the client's house, tucking the notes away and shuffling as she waited for Naru to move so she could get out. He ignored her fidgeting and stepped from the van, walking to the front door as Monk pulled on the drive. The door opened as he got close, Anna standing there smiling nervously at him.

"Shibuya-san," she greeted, bowing politely. He nodded in response.

"Izami-san."

Mai came up behind him and bowed, followed by Lin, Monk and Matsuzaki. John appeared behind them, and the client's gaze softened as she saw him.

"Father Brown! You came back!"

She slipped into English to welcome John, who smiled and walked forward. He shook her hand, greeting her in English also.

"Anna. How are you?"

"Not bad. There's only been one incident since you were here last, and it was only in Naomi for a few minutes."

"Is she alright?"

In answer, a little girl ran up behind Anna and wrapped her arms around her mother's knees.

"Mommy, Rin is being mean again."

Anna smiled apologetically and disengaged her daughter's hands from her legs, stepping back so the girl could see who was in the doorway.

"Naomi, these are the nice people who are going to make the ghost go away."

Naomi was a pretty little girl. She had a flattering mix of her mother's Australian and her father's Japanese heritage, with pale skin and dark hair and eyes. Her black curls were in pigtails, which were currently lopsided. Mai made a cooing noise.

"Aw, she's so cute!"

Naru had expected this response, but rolled his eyes anyway. The little girl looked up at them all with big eyes and huddled close to her mother. Anna smiled down at her.

"You remember Father Brown?"

Naomi nodded, and John stepped forward, kneeling down to her level.

"These people are with me," he told the little girl. Naomi cast them all another wary look. "They're going to help you."

The girl wasn't convinced. Naru shook his head. He disliked working cases where children were involved; they were often the cause of the phenomena, and when they weren't, they made easy targets. Either way, cases were always more complicated with them underfoot. He looked to Mai for help. If anybody could calm the girl down and let them get on with their job, it was her.

Mai caught his look and smiled broadly, leaning down beside John and speaking carefully. The entire conversation since arriving had been in English, and while he knew that she was skilled at the language, he wasn't sure how she would fare in this situation. To his mild surprise, and not a little pride, her speaking was flawless.

"Hi there! You're Naomi, right? I'm Mai."

Naomi waved shyly. Mai made the isn't-she-cute cooing sound again and knelt, leaning close to the girl and making motions for her to mimic the action. Naomi, curious rather than scared now, did so. Mai spoke to her in a stage whisper.

"Can I tell you a secret?"

The girl nodded. Mai cupped her hand around the child's ear and muttered something that Naru didn't catch. Whatever she said made the girl beam and giggle, nodding. Mai said something else, and Naomi grabbed her hand and turned to face the others.

"Mai's coming to play with me. See you later."

It was said so casually that everyone just stared. Mai got to her feet and let the girl tug her into the house, winking at Naru as she left. That went better than he'd expected. Clearing his throat, he returned the conversation to Japanese, as he wasn't sure how well the monk and miko spoke English and he didn't want to explain everything twice.

"Do you have a room set up for our equipment?"

Anna nodded and led them inside the house.

"You can use Naomi's room to set up in. She's moved in with me for the time being anyway; the boys think it's great fun, but she's more sensitive than they are. The ghost scares her."

"It hasn't hurt her, has it?" John asked. She shook her head, leading them upstairs and showing them to a small room with pink walls and furniture. There were dolls and horse toys on a desk beneath the window, and a frilly pink sheet on the western-style bed. Definitely the room of a young girl.

"No, but she doesn't like not remembering." Anna said, stopping just inside the door. "She's been sleeping with me since this all started. My husband has moved in with the boys to make sure that if anything happens at night, they don't hurt themselves."

"Has there been any activity in this room?" Naru asked. Anna looked at his quizzically. He elaborated. "Has the spirit ever been seen in here?"

"Oh, no, we've not seen it. Naomi said she saw a little boy once, before it started possessing them, but she's not seen him since. I don't know if it was the spirit, or if she just saw a boy. She didn't say anything else about him."

"And where do the possessions happen the most?"

Anna bit her lip, eyes turning to the window.

"When they're in the garden. I'd stop them going out, but you try keeping three children locked in the house, especially when two of them are boys approaching their teens."

Satisfied that this room was safe to use as a base, he nodded to Lin.

"Fetch the equipment from the van. Takigawa-san, Matsuzaki-san, help him."

The three left the room, and Naru walked over to the window and looked out. The room was on the side of the house, but some of the rear could be seen at the far side of the glass. The garden was quite large for this part of town, with fencing down either side and the end bordered by trees. As he watched, two boys ran from the house into the garden.

"My sons," Anna said beside him. "I kept them home from school today in case you needed to talk to them."

He nodded. They, too, had a mix of their parent's looks; the older boy was blonde like his mother with what Naru assumed to be his father's facial features. Rin was more like his sister – dark hair, pale skin, and a grin that was almost as wide as his face.

"They like playing out there, even with what's happening. I've tried to tell them it's not a game, but they won't listen. They keep going out there."

"And Naomi?" Naru asked. Anna shrugged.

"She follows her big brothers."

John laid a hand on Anna's shoulder and started comforting her in English. Naru turned away from the window as Lin returned with a monitor.

"Clear the desk and set up the monitors on there. I want two cameras in the garden; make sure you can see all of it. Microphones too. Matsuzaki-san," he said, grabbing her attention as she walked in with cables in her arms. "Make protective charms for the children. I don't want to have to exorcise them if it can be helped."

"Can I get into base first?" she snapped, dropping the cable at her feet and almost causing Monk to trip over. Naru ignored her outburst and left the room, heading downstairs. Lin and Monk could handle setting up the equipment, the miko had just been given her job, and John was comforting the client. He needed to find Mai. He didn't like that they'd been here for fifteen minutes, and she'd been out of everyone's sight the whole time.

Hearing speech from a room to his left, Naru pushed open the door and looked inside. It was a living room, fairly spacious, with a comfortable-looking sofa against one wall and two matching armchairs on either side. A television sat opposite them, currently turned off, and a large rug covered the remaining floor space. Mai and Naomi sat in the centre of the rug, each holding a rag doll and looking up at him. He'd interrupted play time.

Trying not to roll his eyes at the sight of Mai playing with dolls, he stepped inside. Naomi glared and snapped at him in English.

"No boys allowed in here! They're smelly and bad! Only girls!"

He raised an eyebrow at Mai, who stifled a laugh and climbed to her feet.

"I'll be right back, Naomi," she said to the little girl, who crossed her arms in protest. She led him from the room and shut the door almost closed, keeping it open a crack and using the gap to check on the little girl inside. Naru shook his head at her.

"Boys are smelly?" he asked. She laughed again, shrugging.

"I had to say something to her, and that seemed like a good way to make friends. It worked, so don't complain."

Naru decided to drop it. It wasn't that important; he was more concerned with the way Mai kept checking on Naomi.

"Is something wrong?"

She bit her lip, shaking her head.

"No, not exactly. I… I don't know. I don't want to leave her alone."

"Your intuition?"

Mai pulled a confused face at him, and he realised they were still speaking in English. He had slipped into his native language easily, following her lead without realising. He repeated himself in Japanese and Mai nodded, returning to her mother tongue.

"Oh, yes. I think so. I just feel like I need to be with her."

"The ghost is targeting her?"

Mai looked back at the child, then shook her head slowly.

"No… yes… I'm not sure. I can't feel the ghost here."

"Most of the possessions have happened in the garden."

Mai nodded and looked up at him. "Do you want me to have a walk around and see if I can feel anything?"

Naomi called for Mai to hurry up. She smiled and said she was coming. Naru wasn't left with much choice; he didn't want Naomi in the garden while Mai still felt protective over her, and the girl had attached to his assistant very rapidly. He shook his head. Mai's ability to wrap people around her little finger always amazed him.

"Later. For now, stay here and see if you can find anything out from Naomi. She might have seen the spirit. Talk to the boys as well if you get a chance."

"Will do," she promised, opening the door and returning to the impatient child sat on the rug. Naru watched them for a few seconds, then slid the door shut and went back upstairs.

Xxx

After sending Matsuzaki down to sit with Mai and Naomi (she had snapped at him again, but done as he'd asked) Naru supervised the setting up of the equipment. John and Monk were in the garden, each armed with a camera, and were adjusting them to his satisfaction. Naru nodded and spoke into the walkie-talkie.

"Alright Bou-san, that looks good. A little higher, John. There. Alright, set up the microphone and then come back."

He got a rather sarcastic affirmative from Monk and laid the walkie-talkie on the desk by Lin. It was almost half past eleven, and he was expecting Yasuhara to show up at any moment. That also meant that Mai would be needing to leave soon if she was to make her classes on time. He left Lin to supervise the microphone set-up and headed back downstairs to the living room. The door was open this time, and Matsuzaki was sitting beside the client on the sofa, chatting lightly as she made charms. Mai and Naomi were nowhere to be seen. Naru cleared his throat and raised an eyebrow at the miko.

"Where is Mai?"

It was Anna who answered him.

"In the kitchen with the children. I think they're making cookies."

Naru shook his head, both at Mai's idea of what constituted 'getting information' and the miko's idea of watching Mai. He shot Matsuzaki a reprimanding glare and walked through the room to the door Anna pointed out, entering into what could only be described as controlled chaos. Mai was stood by the table while all three Izami children sat around it, armed with cookie dough and cutters. The boys were competing to see who could get the most shapes from their square, leading to what looked like many headless dinosaurs, while Naomi was being very careful that her flowers and butterflies were all perfect. Mai was smiling at the children, watching that they didn't hurt themselves with the cutters.

That was the controlled part. 'Chaos' described the rest of the room. There was flour sprinkled liberally across most surfaces, including the floor, and a pile of used bowls and utensils was stacked haphazardly beside the sink. The children were all smudged with dough, and Mai herself bore a dusting of sugar across her cheek and ear. All four looked as though they were thoroughly enjoying themselves.

Naru cleared his throat, making them all pause and look up at him. Mai smiled, which was enough for the boys to lose interest and return to their dough. Naomi, who had apparently warmed up to him, grinned and waved. He nodded awkwardly, looking back to Mai. She walked around the table to him.

"Hey Naru. Everything ok?"

"This is a novel way of doing your job," he replied, resisting the urge to wipe the sugar from her cheek. She blushed lightly.

"The boys were getting in the way of setting up the cameras, and this is a good way to keep children entertained."

"I'm sure," he said dryly, choosing not to make a comment about Mai's age. It was too easy. "Are you going to class today?"

She frowned at him, then checked her watch and gasped. "I didn't realise it was that late!"

"Obviously," he noted, gaining a glare from his assistant. Mai opened her mouth to tell him off, paused, then smirked in a way that reminded him unsettlingly of himself.

"I have to go," she said over her shoulder to the children, who groaned as one. That unnerving smile didn't shift at all. "It's alright; Naru will help you finish the cookies."

He really should have seen that one coming. He turned his best glare on Mai to no effect; she stuck her tongue out and him and pushed him in the direction of the table.

"Have fun," she taunted gleefully as she retreated. She shut him in the kitchen with the children before he could make an escape. He scowled after her, plotting ways to get her back for this.

A tugging on his sleeve made him turn around. Naomi was stood beside him, smiling.

"Do you want to cut out?" she asked, offering him a butterfly-shaped cutter. He sighed. If he called Matsuzaki in here to take over, she would smirk, ridicule him and leave him to it. The others were all upstairs and so out of range, and even if he did call them down they would react the same way as the miko. Well, maybe not John, but Monk certainly would, and Naru wouldn't ask Lin anyway; the Chinese man was not good with children.

Slowly, he took the cutter from Naomi. She grinned widely and pulled him to the table, telling him that he had to be careful and make sure that all the shape had dough in it.

Oh, Mai was going to pay for this.

* * *

><p><span>Yasu's case notes<span>

You have no idea how much I love you, Mai, for doing this to the Boss-man. I still manage to tease him about it.

_Still? Yasu, this happened ages ago. Don't you have fresher material?_

I do, but this is too easy to resist. All I have to do is buy flower-shaped cookies and eat them slowly in front of Naru. His face twists up like he's sucking a lemon; it's brilliant.

_...Right. You're too easily amused, Yasu._

Says you. Cookie?

Next time: Mai collapses in class, Naru rushes to her side, and the ensuing actions lead to a phone call to Luella. Naru is not happy.


End file.
